Two charity hospitals in Illinois are facing a life-or-death decision. There's not much left of either of them — one in Chicago's south suburbs, the other in impoverished East St. Louis — aside from emergency rooms crowded with patients seeking free care. Now they would like the state's permission to shut down.If you think it's hard to turn a profit in this oeconomy, keep in mind how hard it is to make it when you're a charity relying on donations and endowments. I work for a such a charity that provides tertiary health care to children. Until recently, they paid for everything without any reimbursement from insurance or Medicaid, and had done so since the 1920s, with 22 hospitals around North America. But due to a number of factors, including the oeconomy, they are trying to survive by the acceptance of insurance so they will be able to continue their mission, but still without cost to the families in terms of co-pays or deductibles, providing the same excellent care they always have. It's a rather daunting prospect.
The institutions, which have served low-income people in the state for more than 100 years, represent a significant development that's gone largely unnoticed as the nation climbs out of the recession. Many charity hospitals, already struggling with rising costs, are on the brink of failure because of looming budget cuts, increasing numbers of uninsured patients and a slow economic recovery.
At least we provide specialised care. I can't imagine being in a neighbourhood where the only primary care hospital is forced to close because they simply cannot afford to stay open. When that happens the people who lose the most are those without the means to seek care at other hospitals. But it seems to me that this will drive up emergency visits and care that must be written off--and therefore health costs--up even further for everyone else. So no one wins. I hope those states that are so slow on their Medicaid payments who are killing their safety net hospitals realise that.
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